Town Meeting postponed to Monday, June 15, 2020

The following email was sent to Milton Town Meeting members on April 29th:

Dear Town Meeting Member,

As you know, Town Meeting is required to meet annually and vote a budget for the coming fiscal year in order for town operations to continue smoothly.

I am writing to alert you that the Select Board and I agreed we should defer Annual Town Meeting to Monday night June 15, 2020.

Further, this year’s Annual Town Meeting may need to be a virtual one due to the current Covid-19 health crisis. How to do this, while also protecting the health and welfare of our members, is the challenge we face.

I have participated with Town Moderators across the state discussing how to best address the issue. A group of moderators has proposed emergency legislation, currently before the State Legislature, that would allow “representative town meeting to be held through remote participation by means of a video conferencing platform” due to this pandemic.

To plan for this possibility, I have formed a committee to develop a plan that will keep members informed, define the process, and provide the training to make this as smooth as possible. To start, please take a moment to complete a brief survey that will help us establish members’ access to attend a virtual town meeting. We recognize that the members have a variety of technologies and experience participating in video conferences so this survey will help us understand you better (survey link removed; if you are a TMM please check your email for the link).

Our committee is working with peers in other representative town meeting moderators to design a meeting experience for you that will be both productive and enjoyable. As the committee designs the meeting experience, we will communicate with you regularly.

It is possible but unlikely that the Governor will lift the current restrictions before our scheduled town meeting. However, it is important that we be prepared.

Thanks for your cooperation. I am sure there will be questions. Please address them to [email protected].

Regards,

Robert G. Hiss, Town Moderator